Paper feed for bread wrapping machines



Oct. 8,` 1940. A. A. KOTTMANN PAPER FEED FOR BREAD WRAFPING MACHINES Filed Nov. 9, 1938 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR ARTHURA A. KOTTMANN ATTORNEY S 00L 8, 1940- A. A. KOTTMANN PAPER FEED FOR BREAD WRAFPING IACIIINESk 25 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Nov. 9, 1938 N M/ my o K R., N mA R N.R O Mm mm/w R Oct 3, 1940 A. A. KOTTMANN 2,217,591

PAPER FEED FOR BREAD WRA'PPING MACHINES Filed Nov. 9, 1938 s' sheets-sheet s I 11411111/1111ffl/11111111111111147111 l11111lllllllllllllllll//l/l/ll/ "l Y EN 7/ 5 l I l z INVENTOR ARTHUR A. KOTTMANN Patented Oct. 8, 1940 UNITED STATES PAPER FEED FOR BREAD WRAPPING MACHINES Arthur A. Kottmann, Davenport, Iowa,

assignor to Micro-Weston, `Inc., Bettendori', Iowa, a corporation of Delaware Application November 9, `1938, Serial No. 239,622

5 Claims.

This invention relates to bread wrapping machines and more particularly to the handling of the wax paper employed for wrapping in such machines.

5 Bread wrapping machines are commonly operated in rooms where the air is quite warm, and under such conditions the wax coating of the wrapping paper is softened and tends to Wipe oi onto the paper guiding and feeding elements of 10 the machine.

The present invention has for its object to prevent the gumming up of the paper handling parts of the machine by providing means in connection with the paper feed for chilling each wrapping l5 sheet immediately before it is severed from the paper strip and delivered to the wrapping mechanism.

It is known that the seal at the folds of a waxpaper bread wrapper is considerably improved by 20 introducing moisture into the folds prior to the passage of the wrapped loaf between the heated sealing plates of the wrapping machine.

An important object of the present invention is to provide a device for chilling the waxpaper 25 Wrapping sheets in such manner that moisture is condensed upon the exterior surfaces of the sheets which will be converted into steam during the sealing operation and improve the bond between.

the folded edges of the wrapping sheet. 30 With the above and other objects in view the invention may be said to comprise the paper feeding device as illustrated in the accompanying drawings hereinafter described and particularly set forth in the appended claims, together with l5 such variations and modifications thereof as will be apparent to one skilled in the art to which the invention appertains.

Reference should be had to the accompanying drawings forming a part of this specification, in l which: y

Figure 1 is a side elevation of a paperfeeding mechanism embodying the invention and a porvtion of the bread wrapping machine to which it is applied; L5, Fig. 2 is a top plan view of the paper feeding mechanism;

Fig. 3 is a longitudinal section taken on the line indicated at 3-3 in Fig. 2; ,o Fig. 4 is a fragmentary sectional view showing the chilling plates in paper-engaging position;

Fig. 5 is a section taken on the line indicated at 5-5 in Fig. 4;

Fig. 6 is a section taken on the line indicatedv Fig. 7 is a longitudinal section through a slightly modified form of paper-chilling device; and

Fig. 8 is a transverse section taken on the line indicated at 8-8 in Fig. 7.

'I'he paper-feeding mechanism of the present 5 invention may be applied to any bread-wrapping machine of the type in which suitable lengths of Wax paper are intermittently fed to the wrapping mechanism. In the accompanying drawings the feed device of the present invention is shown ap- 10 plied to a bread Wrapping machine of the type disclosed in my co-pending application'Serial No. 203,865, filed April 23, 1938, only as muchof the wrapping machine being shown as is necessary for an understanding of the present invention. 16

The frameof the machine is indicated by the reference numeral I. The wax paper is supplied to the machine from a reel 2 passing from the reel under a guide roller 3 over a feed roller 4 being held against the feed roller by a pressure roller 5. 20 'I'he feed roller 4 is intermittently driven and immediately in front of the feed roller there is a cutter consisting of va stationary bar 6 and a reciprocating blade 1, which is operated to cut the wax paper in lengths to provide suitable wrapping sheets which are delivered to the wrapping mechanism. 'I'he wrapping machine has an infeed bread conveyor 8 and a discharge conveyor 9 for the wrapped bread, the wrapping mechanism (not shown) being within the housing 4portion I0 of 30 the machine. The machine is provided with a motor II which drives a belt I2, which drives a shaft I3 which carries a pinion I4 meshing with a gear I5 on a shaft I6 which drives a shaft I'I through a chain I8. 'Ihe shaft I1 carries a pin- 35 ion I9 which meshes with a pinion 20 on ashaft 2I. The feed and discharge conveyors 8 and 9 are driven from the shafts I1 and 2| by means of chains 22 and 23. The shaft I6 has a crank 24 which is connected by a connecting rod 25 to a 40 segmental gear 26 to oscillate the gear 26 through a predetermined angle during each revolution of the shaft I6. The-segmental gear 26 meshes with a gear 21 carried by shaft 28 and the shaft 28 carries crank arms 29 which are connected by links 30 to slides 3| on opposite sides of the frame. Links 32 connect the links 38 with levers 33 which rock upon fulcrum links 34, each pivoted at its upper end to one of the levers 33 and its'lower end to the frame. The fulcrum links 34 rock upon 50 opposite ends of a c-ross shaft 35. The ratio between the segmental gear 26 and the gear 21 is such as to impart an angular movement to -the crank arms 29 of substantially 180. 'I'he levers 33, which are oscillated in timed relation to the movement of the feed and discharge conveyors, carry the cutter blade 1 to which a cutting stroke is imparted during each oscillation of the levers 33. Means is provided for intermittently actuating the feed roller 4 to advance a length of paper beneath the cutter blade 1 during intervals in which the blade is in elevated position. Actuation ofthe feed roller is controlled by a pivoted trip member 36 mounted above the infeed conveyor 8 and positioned to be engaged by each loaf of bread on the conveyor as the loaf approaches the wrapping mechanism. The trip member 36 is attached to a rock shaft 31 which, as shown in Figs. 2 and 6, has a stop nger 38 attached thereto adjacent one end. The stop nger 38 normally projects into the path of lever 39, mounted to swing about a horizontal pivot at one side of the conveyor 8. The lever 39 is connected by a connecting rod 40 with a lever 4| on the opposite side of the conveyor. The lever 4| is pvoted to swing horizontally on a bracket 42. The forward end of the lever 4| is yieldingly held against a fixed stop on the rod 40 by means of a spring 43 on the rod 49 and is pressed inwardly toward the conveyor frame by means of a second spring 44 on a rod 45, fixed to the frame and projecting through the lever. The spring normally tends to swing the forward end of the lever 4| and the upper end of the lever 39 inwardly toward the conveyor, but movement of the lever 39 past vertical position is prevented when the stop finger 38 is in the path of the lever. Whenever a loaf of bread engages the trip arm 36, the stop nger 38 1s swung out of the path of the lever 39, whereupon the spring 44 swings the forward end of the lever 4| inwardly toward the conveyor frame. The lever 4| rearwardly of its pivot engages a clutch member 46, which is continuously rotated by a sprocket chain 41 on the shaft of the feed roller 4. The clutch member 46 is engaged with a clutch member 48 fixed to the shaft of feed roller 4 when the lever 39 is actuated by the spring 44 after release of the lever by engagement of a loaf of bread with the trip member 36. A pair of cams 50 and 5| are mounted, one on the frame alongside the conveyor and the other on the inner side of the lever 39. These cams are engaged by rollers 52 carried by an extension 33*al of one of the levers 33 when the rearward end of the lever 33 is in its lowermost position. The rollers 52 pass between the cams 59 and 5| and move the lever 4| outwardly to release the clutch and stop the feed roller, and to reset the trip mechanism at the end of the stroke of the lever 33. Thus, as each loaf of bread is delivered to the machine, a suitable length of paper is fed by the feed roller 4. A

wrapping sheet for the loaf is cut oi by the blade 1 and the movement of the feed roller is stopped just before the severance of the wrapping sheet. The bread having passed the trip member 36, the stop finger 38 will prevent actuation of the clutch ubtil another loaf of bread engages the trip mem- In the operation of the machine, the feed conveyor 8 is continuously driven and the paper cutting blade 1 is continuously reciprocated in timed relation to the travel of the feed conveyor, each complete stroke of .the cutting blade being made while the feed conveyor is traveling a predetermined distance. The paper is fed forwardly to the machine intermittently by means of the trip-controlled clutch, a suitable length of paper for wrapping' a loaf being advanced upon each actuation of the feed roller, and cut off by the blade 1 as each loaf of bread is delivered to the wrapping mechanism.

When the wrapping machine is operated in a warm room the wax coating of the paper is softened by heat and the wax will wipe off on the feed rollers and on the paper handling elements of the wrapping mechanism. Under these conditions considerable diiculty has been experienced in keeping these parts sufficiently clean to perform their functions satisfactorily. The present invention provides means for eliminating this difficulty by chilling each sheet of wrapping paper during the dwell between the feeding operations immediately prior to the severence of the wrapping sheet from the strip. l

As illustrated in Figs. 1 to 5, the paper chilling means is in the form of refrigerating plates which closely overlie the top and bottom surfaces of the paper rearwardly of the feed rollers and which are of a size substantially corresponding to that of the wrapping sheet which is severed from the strip and delivered to the wrapping mechanism.

Between the guide roller 3 to the feed roller 4 the paper passes over the surface of a hollow bed plate 53 which is of rectangular form and of a width corresponding substantially to the width of the paper sheet and of a length sucient to cover the major portion of the length of sheet which is advanced upon actuation of the feed roller 4. Immediately above the paper strip there is a sec- .ond hollow refrigerating plate 54 of a size corresponding to that of the bed plate 53. Suitable refrigerant is circulated through the hollow plates to maintain the metal at a low temperature so that during each dwell of the paper feed the paper between the plates 53 and 54 is effectively chilled. The refrigerating plates 53 and 54 may be mounted for relative movement and actuated to clamp the paper between them during the intervals in which the paper is at rest, and the gripping faces of the plates are preferably provided with grooves 55 which provide passages for escape of air as the plates are moved to clamping position. As shown in Figs. 1 to 5, the upper plate 54 has a slight vertical movement from a position in engagement with the paper to a position in which it is spaced sufciently above the plate 53 to permit free passage of the paper through the space between the plates. The plate 54 is provided with posts 56 positioned one adjacent each of the four corners thereof. The two forward posts 55 are connected to arms 51 and the two rear posts are attached to arms 58 parallel with the arms 51, the arms 51 and 58 being attached to cross shafts 59 and 6|) which are disposed in parallel relation and journalled in the frame above the plates. The shafts 59 and 60 have upwardly extending arms 6| and 62 which are connected by a link 63 so that the two cross shafts 59 and 60 are connected to rock simultaneously to lift the plate 54. The arm 6| is connected by a connecting rod 64 to a solenoid 65 which, when energized, pulls the rod 64 rearwardly, swinging the arms 51 and 58 upwardly to lift the plate 54. The solenoid 65 is controlled -by a switch 66 mounted on the frame of the infeed conveyor inwardly of the forward end of the lever 4|. The switch 66 is normally open but is '-closed by inward movement of the lever 4| so that whenever the lever 4| is actuated to connect the feed roller 4 to the driving mechanism the switch 66 is closed to actuate the solenoid and lift the plate 54 out of contact with the paper. When the forward end of the lever 4| is moved outwardly to disconnect the feed roller 4 from the driving mechanism, the switch 66 is opened, deenergizing the solenoid 65 and permitting the plate 54 to drop into engagement with the paper. A suitable fluid refrigerant is circulated through the refrigerating plates 53 and 54 and the wrapper sheet for each loaf is effectively chilled to solidify the wax coating thereon immediately prior to its delivery to the wrapping mechanism so that the gumming of the working parts of the machine by wax wiped from the paper is substantially eliminated.

The upper refrigerating plate 54 overlies the surface of the wax paper, which is the exterior surface of the wrapping sheet when it is applied to a loaf of bread in the wrapping machine, a small amount of moisture on the external surfaces of the wrapping sheets is an -advantage since it improves the seal between the folds of the paper at the ends of the loaves formed by the application of heat and pressure by means of hot sealing plates in the wrapping machine. tached to the upper plate 54 provide meansfor circulating a refrigerating fluid through this plate and pipes 68 attached to the lower plate 53 provide means for circulating a suitable refrigerant through the lower plate. The temperature of the refrigerant circulated through the pipes 68 and lower plate 53 is preferably such as to maintain said plate at a temperature below 32 F., while the temperature of the refrigerant circulated through the pipes 6l and upper plate 54 is such as to keep the upper plate 54 at a temperature somewhat above 32 F. The temperature of the plate 54 being above freezing, some moisture will condense thereon and upon the upper surface of the paper sheet, so that the Wrapping sheets will have moist external surfaces and a superior bond will be provided between the folds thereof.

In Figs. 7 and 8 of the drawings a modified form of chilling device is illustrated. As shown in these gures, the paper is fed from the guide roller 3 to the feed roller 4 over a stationary bed 1U and above the bed there is mounted a hollow refrigerating plate 1I through whicha fluid Arefrigerant is circulated, the plate H having an inlet pipe 12, an outlet pipe 13 and a. partition 14 provided with openings 15 adjacent the bottom wall of the chamber within the plate. The plate 1| is spaced above the bed 10 a distance just sumcient to provide a free passage for the paper between the bed 'I0 and the plate 1I The air in the narrow space between the plate 'H and bed 10 is kept at a relatively low temperature and each wrapping sheet is chilled during the interval between the feeding operations immediately before it is severed from the strip and delivered to the wrapping mechanism.

It will be apparent that the device of the present invention provides a means for delivering uniformly chilled sheets of wax paper to the wrapping mechanism of the machine, each wrapping sheet being uniformly chilled and being transferred directly from the chilling device to the wrapping mechanism so that the wax coating does not have time to become warm or sof- Pipes 61 attened prior to and during the wrapping operation.

Furthermore, it is to be understood that the particular form of apparatus shown and described, and the particular procedure set forth, are presented for purposes of explanation and illustration and that various modifications of said apparatus vand procedure can be made without departing from my invention as dened in the appended claims.

What I claim is:

1. A wax paper feed for wrapping machines comprising means for intermittently feeding a strip of wax paper toward the machine, means for cutting a wrapping sheet from said strip upon each actuation of the feeding means, a bed over which the paper strip passes to the cutter, and a refrigerated plate overlying said bed to chill successive wrapping sheets during the period of rest immediately before they are severed from the strip and delivered to the Wrapping machine 2. A wax paper feed for wrapping machines comprising means for intermittently feeding a strip of wax paper toward the machine, means for cutting a wrapping sheet from said strip upon each actuation of the feeding means, a bed over which the paper strip passes to the cutter, a plate overlying the paper on said bed, and means circulating a refrigerant through said plate and bed.

3. A wax paper feed for Wrapping machines comprising means for intermittently feeding a strip of wax paper toward the machine means for cutting a wrapping sheet from said strip upon each actuation of the'feeding means, a bed over which the paper strip passes to the cutter, a plate overlying the paper on said bed, means circulating a refrigerant through said plate and bed, and means for moving said plate to clamp the paper during the intervals between feed movements.

4. A wax paper feed for-delivering chilled and moistened wax paper Wrapping' sheets to a Wrapping machine comprising two refrigerating plates having parallel faces in close proximity means for cooling one of said plates to a temperature above the Water freezing temperature, whereby water condensed thereon from the atmosphere remains liquid, means for cooling the other plate to a temperature below freezing, and means for feeding the wax paper between said plates to chll the same and moisten one surface thereof 5. A wax paper feed for delivering chilied and moistened wax paper wrapping sheets to a wrap ping machine comprising upper and lower refrigerating plates having parallel faces in close proximity, means for cooling the upper of said plates to a temperature above the water freezing temperature, whereby water condensed thereon from the atmosphere remains liquid, means for cooling the other plate to a temperature below freezing, and means for feeding the wax paper between said plates with the surface thereof which is exterior to the Wrapped articles uppermost, whereby the paper is chilled and moistened upon its exterior surface.

ARTHUR A. KOTTMANN. 

